Honkai Impact: I, The Herrscher of Ice, Am Loved By Players

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In truth, Cocolia couldn't detect anything unusual about Ana.

To Cocolia, Ana appeared as nothing more than a peculiar phantom thief dressed in strange attire, reminiscent of Kallen in a hallucination.

The Ultimate Knight Armor was developed from the Key of Blankness, diverging significantly from the style and purpose of the Red Knight. While the Ultimate Knight Armor aimed at artificially creating Herrschers, the Red Knight was designed for eliminating them.

Consequently, the Ultimate Knight focuses more on harnessing Herrscher's Authorities and Honkai Energy. With the Gem of Desire integrated, these powers become completely internalized, making it impossible to discern from Ana's appearance that she possesses a Herrscher Core.

However, as this was Ana's first time loading the core, her unfamiliarity with the armor led to such misperceptions.

"Hmph, no matter who you are, nobody can take anything from me!"

Seeing Ana remained silent, Cocolia scoffed coldly and raised her hand. Multiple Strategic Titans materialized within the laboratory, simultaneously aiming their advanced anti-Honkai weapons at Ana.

This being a facility for experimenting on Herrschers, naturally, precautions were in place against potential loss of control or rampages. However, realistically, how could one confine and study a true Herrscher?

If any entity could be captured and researched, it couldn't rightfully be called a Herrscher. In essence, all these anti-Honkai weapons are essentially useless junk.

To clarify, none of Anti-Entropy's weapons have proven truly reliable. Take the Moonlight Throne, for example; sure, they possess it, but they didn't develop it themselves.

As obedient machinery, these Titan mechs wasted no time and immediately attacked Ana. Due to the confined space within the laboratory, close-quarters combat was impractical, so they resorted to firing energy beams at her.

Sensing the incoming rays, Ana snorted coldly.

Based on the Ultimate Knight's capabilities, she could effortlessly dodge these beams; the Gem of Desire's speed enhancement was quite remarkable.

However, Ana felt there was no need for evasion.

She had plenty of ways to deal with this scrap metal, and now seemed like an ideal opportunity to test the performance of the Ultimate Knight. She had been eager for a chance to experiment with her new toy.

Ana raised her hand, assuming a stance ready to execute a palm strike.

Instantaneously, a swirling vortex formed, resembling the Yin-Yang symbol, silently deflecting and absorbing the incoming beams. Then, with a swift push, Ana launched the vortex charged with Titan attacks back like a missile, instantly obliterating several mechs upon impact.

These moves originated from Fu Hua and Midlife's techniques within the Elysian Realm, inspired by a hands-free gameplay style reminiscent of a hero from a game in her previous life.

Executing this maneuver flawlessly, Ana almost wanted to add a catchphrase but refrained due to its potential embarrassment.

With these actions complete, Ana gestured provocatively towards Cocolia.

"Counselor Cocolia, if that's all you've got, perhaps it's time to relinquish your power." In a calm yet taunting tone, Ana added another cutting remark.

"You! Are you affiliated with Raiden Ryoma?" Cocolia trembled with anger as she suddenly questioned Ana. From her perspective, only someone connected to Raiden Ryoma could justify such snarky remarks, addressing her as "Counselor Cocolia."

"Not bad imagination, but—excuse me!"

As Ana spoke, the distinctive Herrscher eye pattern—a swirling vortex—appeared in her pale pink irises. Empowered by the Gem of Desire, Ana created seamless streams of fluid, transforming them into whirling wind blades centered around herself.

Everything touched by the spinning winds turned to dust.

Witnessing this, even Cocolia had no choice but to retreat and evade. As an ordinary human, she hadn't undergone any Honkai modifications. Her sole distinction was being a survivor of the Second Honkai Eruption, which granted her temporary immunity to Honkai Energy corruption, albeit without awakening Stigmata powers.

The Titan mech beside her took a step forward and activated its defensive barrier.

Against Ana's swirling winds, this barrier held up initially, but over time, cracks appeared on the Titan's surface, and the once sturdy shield began disintegrating like weathered rock.

Without the protection of the barrier, even the robust Titan mech was swiftly torn apart by the relentless gale, turning to dust.

Ana ceased the wind vortex; frankly, the Herrscher of Wind's power seemed somewhat weak—intense, yet fleeting. It could strain against other Herrschers, but when combined with their abilities, it wasn't merely additive (1+1=2), but exponentially greater than that.

This brief test confirmed for Ana that she could indeed harness most of the Herrscher of Wind's capabilities, including generating tornadoes powerful enough to sweep across entire New Zealand.

However, it might require slightly more effort from her due to the inadequate energy conversion rate of her current armor, affecting its overall efficiency.

"Lady Ana, can you control the Gem of Desire now?"

In Ana's arms, Wendy felt an unprecedented sense of security, something Big Sister Bronya had never provided. This was the true allure of a formidable powerhouse.

However, as the former Herrscher of Wind, Wendy still picked up on subtle clues.

"In a way, yes. The Godslayer Armor I'm equipped with can harness the power of my Herrscher Core, so your sacrifice has indeed benefited me," Ana explained, adding this at the end.

In reality, the development of her Godslayer Armor had no connection whatsoever to the experiments Wendy underwent; all relevant data came from the Void Archives and the Key of Blankness.

"I see. So Wendy did contribute to Lady Ana's cause after all."

Wendy wasn't angry but rather felt somewhat exhilarated. As a traditional Valkyrie, her greatest fear was for her efforts and sacrifices to be meaningless.

Indeed, fighters may willingly face death, but it must never be without purpose.

"Yes, let's go meet up with Principal Mei and the others."

With that, Ana's wings flapped, creating a whirlwind tornado that tore off the secret laboratory's roof. She then soared into the sky with Wendy, leaving behind a furious Cocolia below.

Her rage stemmed from sheer helplessness, yet it was entirely deserved.

Recovering the Fourth Herrscher was always a long shot for Cocolia; she had no idea about the true potential of a Herrscher's abilities. Now, facing Ana who could adeptly wield her authority, Cocolia felt as helpless as during the Second Honkai Eruption. All she could do was stomp angrily on the ground.

"Hmph, I'll remember this. Retreat!" she commanded.

"Yes!"

Cocolia ordered an earlier retreat than planned, but Kiana's group didn't expedite their mission either. Eventually, they still had to confront the surprise Cocolia prepared—the colossal mecha, MSR-7 Wotan.